Mike Modano didn't have to think long about how to describe fellow American hockey player Chris Chelios.

"He's a win-at-all-costs kind of guy," Modano said Monday. "Quite the competitor. Always the hardest guy to play against. Nasty, had a temper, but had the talent, too."

Chelios' legend in hockey will grow this week, as he's a shoo-in as a first-time ballot for the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The announcement for the Hall's class of 2013 will come Tuesday afternoon, and the Detroit Red Wings should have two former players inducted, unless Brendan Shanahan is overlooked for what would be a second consecutive year of travesty. With Chelios, there can be no doubt he's in the first time, not when a guy is a top-10 all-time defenseman in the game, and the best-ever American to play his position.

"He was just a guy who did everything well," Modano said. "Playing with him internationally, he was always great. He really wanted to win all the time. His presence and his attitude, he enjoyed whatever he was doing. He could always back up his ego."

My guess for who goes in: Chelios, Shanahan and Niedermayer, for sure, and maybe Makarov. The Hall has, in recent years, become wary of criticism it overlooks players who gained fame elsewhere than the NHL.

Candidates are nominated by an 18-person selection committee, one that currently includes Red former Wings personnel in Scotty Bowman and Igor Larionov.

Chelios grudgingly retired as a player on Aug. 31, 2010, at age 48. He would have played till his dying breath if possible, and then made sure to elbow Death before going, at that. Instead he took a front-office job with the Red Wings, where he still serves as adviser to general manager Ken Holland, as well as often taking a very active role helping mentor the team's defensemen in the minors.

During his nearly quarter century in the NHL, Chelios played most notably for the Montreal Canadiens, the Chicago Blackhawks and the Red Wings. The Red Wings got him late in his career, at age 37, trading for him in March 1999. He was the final, satisfactory end piece in the quest to replace Vladimir Konstantinov, a guy who frustrated opposing players with a relentlessly agitating style of play. He didn't play in a role with the Red Wings conducive to replicating some of the offense Chelios had produced while younger — and which had helped him to Norris Trophies in 1989, 1993 and 1996 — but he was effective and hard to play against and put opponents on edge.

Chelios won two Stanley Cups with the Wings, in 2002 and 2008, adding to the Cup he'd won with Montreal in 1986. Chelios was also a force on the international stage, playing for the U.S. in the Winter Olympics in 1984, 1998, 2002 (where he won silver) and 2006. He was part of the U.S. team that famously topped Canada in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey.

Where the Red Wings got Chelios for the twilight of his career, they got Shanahan in his prime, acquiring him in October 996. Shanahan was viewed as the shot in the arm needed to edge the Red Wings over the finishing line after they'd come up short in the 1995 Stanley Cup Final, and then were ousted in the 1996 conference finals. Shanahan, 27, had just come into his own as a forward renowned for his scoring skills and his physical play.

Sure enough, Shanahan helped the Wings win back-to-back Stanley Cups in 1997 and 1998. He had one of his best seasons in 2001-02, when he reached 37 goals in and 75 points in the regular season and followed up with 19 points in the 23 games in took the Wings to win the 2002 championship. After spending two seasons with the Rangers and then a short stint with New Jersey, Shanahan retired having played 1,524 games, during which he produced 656 goals and 698 assists for 1,354 points, along with 2,489 penalty minutes. He's still the only player in NHL history who has topped 600 goals and 2,000 penalty minutes.

So why wasn't Shanahan elected into the Hall of Fame last year, his first year eligible? After he was dissed over 2012 inductees Joe Sakic, Adam Oates, Pavel Bure and Mats Sundin, speculation arose Shanahan had been pushed aside because he's rankled a person or two since taking over as the NHL's chief disciplinarian two years ago. If he's overlooked a second consecutive year, there really should be some discipline imposed on the people voting.

Chelios is an obvious first-ballot Hockey Hall of Famer, just like Steve Yzerman was in 2009, just like Nicklas Lidstrom will be in 2015. If Shanahan isn't at least a second-ballot inductee, something's rotten in the state of hockey.

Helene St. James writes for the Detroit Free Press, a Gannett property

After Mark Messier, left, signed with the Vancouver Canucks in 1997, the New York Rangers signed Sakic to a three-year, $21 million offer sheet that included a $15 million signing bonus. The Avalanche matched.
Paul Chiasson, AP

After Mark Messier, left, signed with the Vancouver Canucks in 1997, the New York Rangers signed Sakic to a three-year, $21 million offer sheet that included a $15 million signing bonus. The Avalanche matched.
Jeff Roberson, AP

Colorado's Ray Bourque, left, and Sakic wave during the Avalanche's 2001 championship parade. After the win, Sakic immediately handed the Cup to Bourque, who lifted the trophy for the first time in his distinguished career.
Ed Andrieski, AP

Like Sakic, Sundin was elected in his first year of eligibility and began his career in Quebec. The Swedish center was drafted No. 1 overall in 1989, the first European to be chosen that high. He had a career-best 47 goals and 114 points in 1992-93.
Denis Brodeur, NHLI via Getty Images

Oates and Brett Hull (shown at Hull's number retirement ceremony) were a dynamic combination during their 2 1/2 seasons together in St. Louis. Oates had 90 assists during 1990-91, when Hull had 86 goals.
Scott Rovak, US Presswire

Oates, dealt to the Boston Bruins, was Cam Neely's center when Neely had 50 goals in 49 games in 1993-94. Oates had a career-best 142 points with the Bruins in 1992-93, a season in which Neely was limited to 13 games by injury.
Steve Babineau, NHLI via Getty Images

After being critical of Bruins management, Oates was traded in 1997 to the Washington Capitals, where he took the number 77 to honor his friend Ray Bourque. He led the Capitals to the 1998 Stanley Cup Final.
Doug Mills, AP

After a contract dispute in 1998-99, Bure was dealt to the Florida Panthers in January. He got off to a great start, but was lost for the season after tearing his ACL for the second time in his career.
Mark Lennihan, AP